Thinking About Buying a Home?
There are many financial benefits to owning a home. Homeowners can deduct the
interest they pay on their mortgage (long term loan), as well as their property
taxes from their income taxes. It’s also a great way to build personal assets
to ensure you maximize the value of your hard earned money. Due to the high
cost of buying a first home, it can also be a challenging process. In many cases it’s a good idea to meet with
an experienced housing counselor who can guide you through the home buying
process, review your credit, help you access different down payment programs
and find the best mortgage product for your situation. Many
community-based
counselors provide this service free of charge.
Resources for purchasing a home:
There are a variety of resources for people interested in purchasing a home.
This includes down payment assistance programs, preferred lenders for first
time home buyers, and closing cost assistance. Please find more information for
specific programs below.
www.baltimorehousing.org
Baltimore
Housing's Homeownership Office centralizes all programs and services in one
place. Their staff can advise you on which program might be best for you and
help get you connected to local realtors and lenders.
www.livebaltimore.com
The
Live Baltimore Home Center's award-winning site offers information about buying
in Baltimore, preferred real estate agents, homeownership incentives,
neighborhood profiles, and city living events.
www.dhcd.state.md.us
The
State Department of Housing and Community Development has a Web site for the
More House 4 Less and the House Keys 4 Employees programs. More House 4 Less
provides low-interest mortgage loans to low and moderate income households
through private lenders. House Keys 4 Employees provides down payment and
closing cost assistance (up to $5,000) to employees of participating employers.
You can also research homes for sale by the Maryland Housing Fund on DHCD's Web
site.
www.healthyneighborhoods.org
The
Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative (HNI) is an effort of area foundations and the
City of Baltimore
to invest strategically in certain neighborhoods and target blocks within those
neighborhoods. On HNI target blocks, special purchase-rehab mortgages and home
improvement loans are available. In addition, city employees are eligible for
an extra $750 as part of the Baltimore City Employee Homeownership Program, bringing
their total incentive for that program to $3,750.
www.bcdfc.com
Baltimore
Community Lending (formerly the Baltimore Community Development Financing
Corporation) provides a variety of programs including the Vacant House Loan
Program, the Single Family Construction Loan Program, and the Baltimore
Homeowner Emergency Loan Program (HELP). The Vacant House Loan Program offers
homebuyers, interested in purchasing a house to occupy as their primary
residence in Baltimore City, financing for the
acquisition, rehabilitation and closing cost that is incorporated into one
loan. The Single Family Construction Loan Program offers existing Baltimore City owner-occupied homeowners the
opportunity to refinance and rehabilitate their houses. The HELP Program helps
households faced with foreclosure.
Watch Out for Predatory Lenders!
While there are many reputable banks that can provide you with an affordable
mortgage, watch out for mortgage lenders or brokers that seem to be offering a
deal that is too good to be true. These people are often predatory lenders, who
get you to take loans with high interest rates and hidden fees. Many times
these people will come door to door or try to disguise their bad loans by
associating themselves with a legitimate name like a government-sponsored down
payment assistance program. They may even tell you that due to your credit
history or income that another bank will not provide you with better financing.
Don’t be fooled; know your options! Never rush to sign any papers before reading
and understanding the loan terms completely, or having a trusted professional
like a community-based counselor read through the documents with you.
